Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels.Trans. David Higham.The Communist Manifesto: A Modern Edition. Verso Books, 1998. The single most influential piece of literature in communist doctrine, responsible for igniting the spread of communism throughout the world. First published 150 years ago, this work lays down the ideals behind communism.
Pipes, Richard.Communism. Random House, 2001. An authoritative single-volume history of Communism, from theory to practice to its death.
Gottfried, Ted.The Road to Communism. 21st Century, 2002. Part of a 4-volume series on the Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union, for readers in grade 8 and up.
Beitz, Charles R.Political Theory and International Relations. Rev. ed. Princeton University Press, 1999. The author's view of what international relations and political theory should be.
De Tocqueville, Alexis. Ed. J. P. Mayer.Trans. George Lawrence.Democracy in America. HarperCollins, 1988. Portrait of American character, politics, and life by a man who considered American democracy the greatest political experiment of modern times. A classic work first published in the 1830s.